The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) recently awarded a silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence to the Medical Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and Surgical ICU at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital.
The Beacon Award for Excellence — a significant milestone on the path to exceptional patient care and healthy work environments — recognizes caregivers who successfully improve patient outcomes and align practices with AACN’s six Healthy Work Environment Standards: skilled communication, true collaboration, effective decision making, appropriate staffing, meaningful recognition and authentic leadership.
Units that achieve this three-year, three-level award with a gold, silver or bronze designation meet national criteria consistent with the nation’s top quality awards, including Magnet Recognition, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the National Quality Healthcare Award.
“I am unbelievably proud of our team and their achievements,” said Catherine Giegerich, Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer of Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital. “The Beacon Award for Excellence is a testament to the high-quality and safe care that we provide to our patients – and in this case, our sickest patients, every day.”
AACN President Clareen Wiencek, RN, PhD, ACNP, ACHPN, applauds the commitment of the caregivers in the ICU at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands for working together to meet and exceed the high standards set forth by the Beacon Award for Excellence. “The Beacon Award for Excellence recognizes caregivers in stellar units whose consistent and systematic approach to evidence-based care optimizes patient outcomes. Units that receive this national recognition serve as role models to others on their journey to excellent patient and family care,” she explained.The silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence signifies continuous learning and effective systems to achieve optimal patient care. The medical and surgical intensive care units at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands earned its silver award by meeting the following evidence-based Beacon Award for Excellence criteria:
Other Beacon Award designations include bronze and gold.
Recipients who earned a bronze-level award show success in developing, deploying and integrating unit-based performance criteria for optimal outcomes; gold-level awardees demonstrate excellent and sustained unit performance and patient outcomes. For more information on Memorial Hermann The Woodlands, visit our website or call 713-897-2300.